Will.i.am and Pharrell Williams’ Trademark Battle

Music stars Will.i.am (née William Adams) and Pharrell Williams are currently embroiled in a legal battle over the the former’s registered trademark for ‘I AM’.

Williams launched a website (iamother.com) in May of this year. According to legal proceedings filed on the 1st July 2013 the website is designed to focuses on “encouraging individuality through different forms of expression” and it is the property of Williams’ company, I Am Other Entertainment. Will.i.am had previously objected to William’s trademark application but had not sued.

Both artists have trademarks that feature “i” and “am”, however while Will.i.am’s trademark features a full stop between the characters, William’s does not. The law suit has asked the court to declare that the phrase “I Am Other” does not “infringe, dilute or unfairly compete” with will.i.am. The case is I Am Other Entertainment, LLC v. William Adams, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, No. 13-4547. The paperwork calls Will.i.am’s argument “relatively weak” since the phrase “i am” has been used in other trademarks.

Williams is part of the musical duo The Neptunes and has collaborated with artists including Justin Timberlake, Kanye West and Jay-Z. Will.i.am is a member of the multi-million record selling group, The Black Eyed Peas and a successful solo artist in his own right.